General Interest
http://www.fieldmuseum.org/maps/
How do we find our way through the world, geographically speaking? Do we all carry around a type of "mental map" in our head, formed through experience and repetition? Some would say yes, some would beg to differ. Maps remain a powerful way to represent the world in all its spatial glory, and this online exhibit from The Field Museum explores the history of maps and their history over the millennia. Designed to complement an ongoing exhibition at the Museum, the site includes a photo gallery, information about the participating institutions, and about researchers at the Museum who use maps and mapping technology in their own work. The interactive feature is definitely worth a look, as visitors can examine two dozen different maps in detail from Chicago to the Marshall Islands. One can imagine that this remarkable site could also be used in classrooms to expose students to the wide variety of maps that have been created by human hands. [KMG]
In Victorian England, it was not common for women to attend university. Of course, Gertrude Bell was no usual woman, and after reading history at Oxford she went on to travel the globe, with extended stays in Persia and other locales. She was also fascinated by the Arab world and she spent time learning Arabic and later in life she was given the title of Honorary Director of Antiquities in Iraq. After she passed away, her papers were given to the University of Newcastle, and over the past few years they have been digitizing her works and placing them in this online archive. The materials are divided into three primary sections: "Photos", "Diaries", and "Letters". The photo section should not be missed, as visitors can travel across late-19th century Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Syria, and the West Bank through Bell's camera lens and her acutely trained eye. Of course, the diaries are a real find as well and the fifty-year record of her personal letters are quite revealing. [KMG]
http://dl.lib.brown.edu/travelogues/
The John Hay Library at Brown University has an impressive array of collections related to Latin America and the Caribbean. These collections include the Schirmer Collection on Anti-Imperialism and the Paul R. Dupee Mexican History Collection. Recently, Professor James Green and Patricia Figueroa, the librarian and subject specialist for Iberia and Latin America worked together to create this compelling digital library of Latin American travel accounts which span the 16th through 19th centuries. Visitors can browse through these accounts at their leisure, and they will find everything from Louis Aggasiz's "A Journey in Brazil" to Johann Baptist von Spix's "Travels in Brazil in the Years 1817-1820". Additionally, visitors can also read some rather thoughtful essays offered by Professor Green's students that draw on these travel narratives for academic inspiration and contemplation. [KMG]
http://www.icc.cat/web/content/en/citizen/mapes/inici_mapes.html
As an autonomous community within the kingdom of Spain, Catalonia has a rich and diverse history. It includes the cosmopolitan city of Barcelona and also has a rather diverse agricultural base that includes crops like maize, potatoes, and olives. Maps of this lovely region of Spain may be found in abundance on this site, which is provided courtesy of the Institut Cartografica de Catalunya. Visitors can search the collection by place name or they can also search the collection through an interactive map of the entire region which will return individual geological and topographic maps. Finally, it is worth noting that the site is also available in Spanish and Catalan. [KMG]
Upon entering The World Bank's homepage, even the most experienced researcher can feel a bit intimidated. The site contains thousands of documents, and even though they offer a nice search engine, it can be difficult at times to get to specific items quickly. Recently, the World bank teamed up with Google maps to create a very nice "mash-up" that serves as a visual entry point for visitors looking for projects, news, and statistics. Using the Google map directional arrows and zoom functions, visitors can scroll around to look for different resources. The site also contains a legend which tracks low to high income areas, along with active projects sponsored by the World Bank. Finally, visitors can also toggle the map's "satellite" and "hybrid" views on and off as they see fit. Overall, this is a tremendous resource and one that will warrant several return visits. [KMG]
http://www.transformationsjournal.org/
Different forms of communication have always had a tendency to transform interactions and everyday life in ways that have surprised people from many different backgrounds. Academics have long been interested in such dynamic transformations, and this electronic journal represents one of the responses to such processes. As their site notes, this journal is "dedicated to the exploration of ideas, issues and debates emerging out of contemporary global culture." Visitors to the site can read the complete version of every issue on the site, and they will be pleased to find such intriguing titles as "Rethinking Regionality", "Accidental Environments", and "Fleeing the City". Interested parties can also consult the site to learn about the journal's editorial board, their calls for papers, submission guidelines, and related links. [KMG]
http://www.marktwainproject.org/
Mark Twain knew plenty about crafting a great narrative, but things like metadata encoding and primary user functionality were a bit before his time. Fortunately, all of these important tools of modern digital archive work and information science are put to their best use within this very comprehensive site. Dedicated to providing access to more than four decades' worth of archival research by editors at the Mark Twain Project, this site provides access to thousands of his letters and other writings. The ultimate goal of the Project is to produce a digital critical edition, fully annotated, of everything Twain wrote. It's a very ambitious goal, and one that draws on the collaborative strengths of the California Digital Library, the University of California Press, and The Bancroft Project. What is equally impressive is the Project's user guide, which walks users through all of the many search options available to them. Additionally, visitors can also use the "My Citations" option to automatically generate standardized citations for future reference. Over the coming months and years, additional works will be added to the archive, including "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" and "Roughing It". [KMG]
http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/2007/martinpuryear/
If you're worried that there won't be enough to do on a trip the big city while the stagehands are on strike, skip the trip and visit New York MoMA's Martin Puryear exhibition online instead. While it's probably true that viewing sculpture online reduces its 3-dimensional qualities somewhat, MoMA has designed the web exhibition to faithfully recreate some of the feel of the physical show. Wander through 47 of Puryear's works, viewing them at full size on your computer screen, zooming in occasionally to read label texts just as you would in the museum. Additional views of several pieces are included; one of these, C.F.A.O., made from a wheelbarrow topped with an oversized, abstract, African mask, looks vastly different on the two sides depicted. Excerpts from essays in the exhibition catalog are included at the site, as well as several still images showing 5 of Puryears's largest sculptures in the Donald B. and Catherine C. Marron Atrium, one of which, 63-foot tall Ad Astra, was created especially for this space. There is also an amusing video of Puryear and MoMA staff putting the artwork in place. [DC]
